Assessment Arrangements Toolkit

What is the assessment arrangements toolkit and how can it help me?

The Assessment Arrangements Toolkit helps you use effective practice in providing assessment arrangements in internal and external assessments. The toolkit will allow you to make confident and equitable judgements by ensuring that you are gathering the most appropriate evidence to support the provision of assessment arrangements for your learners.

It is aimed at all school staff who deliver national qualifications. It will help your school with gathering evidence for, and verifying, assessment arrangement requests.

In the toolkit you will find examples and templates that you can use or adapt for your school’s needs. Please note that these are working documents from schools. Many of the templates and examples are working documents and we’ve made minimal changes (for example to ensure confidentiality). Please be aware that these documents might not meet our accessibility requirements.

Using these resources is not mandatory. We provide them for information only. They encourage you to reflect on your own practice and review your school’s procedures.

Current guidance

Use the links below to find out more about assessment arrangements and how we quality assure assessment arrangements procedures in school.

The stages of assessment arrangements

This toolkit will take you through the following stages of Assessment Arrangements:

  1. Your documented process for the management of Assessment Arrangements
  2. Identifying the learner’s difficulty
  3. Determining appropriate arrangements
  4. Verifying needs

After each stage, there’s a self-evaluation that will help you decide whether you’ve met our requirements.

Use the tabs below to open each section individually. Alternatively you can show all the sections.

You should have a clear, documented process for managing assessment arrangements. This document must outline key activities and responsibilities so that everyone involved understands their role.

A well-documented process will help you:

  • Ensure appropriate support by showing that an effective internal quality assurance system is in place to verify decisions and that learners receive the support they need.
  • Communicate effectively by providing a basis for conversations with learners, parents, and carers about the decisions made about support.

Every school is required to have a documented process or policy for the management of assessment arrangements.

Here are some examples from other schools:

What is a policy?

A high-level statement, principle, or guideline that sets the overall direction, rules, and expectations for the school on a specific subject. It defines ‘what’ should be done and ‘why’ it is important.

What is a documented process?

A process is a series of interrelated activities or steps that are performed in a specific order to achieve a particular outcome or execute a task. It defines ‘how’ something gets done.

A policy sets the rules and principles, providing the ‘what’ and ‘why’. A process describes the actions and steps, outlining the ‘how’. 

Whatever your documented process is called, it must include the actions and steps you take including who is responsible when identifying, determining and verifying your decisions.

Self-evaluation

When the visiting verifier comes to your school they will ask ‘Do you have a documented process for the management of assessment arrangements?’
Consider:

  • How you communicate this information with the whole school?
  • Is this information easily accessible?
  • Does everyone know the role they play?
  • Is there a process that supports new teachers that join throughout the year to understand their responsibilities as part of the assessment arrangements process?

 

 

 

You must have evidence that the learner has been identified as having a difficulty. This written evidence could be in documented form, or you may wish to provide an explanation of the learner’s support needs. This evidence is typically held by the school's Support for Learning (SfL) team and may include diagnostic letters or observations from teaching and learning.

Each school is responsible for determining:

  • What evidence is required
  • Where to store this evidence
  • How it should be shared

It is crucial that teachers have access to information about a learner's difficulties and the support strategies in place before they begin teaching a new class.

In most cases, a diagnosis is not evidence of the difficulty in accessing a particular assessment.

Here are some examples of pupil records containing this type of information:

Self-evaluation

When the visiting verifier comes to your school they will ask ‘Do you have evidence of the learner’s difficulty?

  • Is this information documented, or can you provide and explanation of the learner’s support needs?
  • Do you have parents requesting support based only on a diagnosis letter? Do you have a step in your process for managing this type of situation?

Evidence and the needs-led model

Our Assessment Arrangements system focuses on a needs-led model, prioritising the quality, not the quantity, of evidence. When generating evidence, your goal is to confidently justify an arrangement, not to provide as many pieces of evidence as possible. The evidence you choose should demonstrate why a particular arrangement is necessary.

An assessment arrangement should always support a learner in their daily lessons and help them show their abilities during an assessment without compromising the qualification's integrity.

The role of the teacher

The teacher role is crucial in identifying appropriate arrangements. They should be actively involved in providing evidence of a learner's varying needs across all subjects and levels.

We require that schools maintain this evidence, and we look for clear documentation of consultation with subject teachers. This shows that your school has considered how different assessment situations across subjects and levels might impact a learner and that your requests for arrangements are made accordingly.

Here are examples of ways that teacher commentary has been vital in determining the most appropriate assessment arrangements.

Determining appropriate arrangement Example 1 – Recording commentary form with guidance and exemplars (110 KB)

In many cases, subject specialist commentary is required to explain how the assessment arrangement was used and what impact it had on the learner. We don’t require that an assessment arrangement results in an improvement in the learner’s mark. 

Extra time

Extra time is an assessment arrangement that may provide an unfair advantage for a learner if the need, and the impact of that need on the learner has not been clearly evidenced. 

The case study below shows a range of coursework evidence that one school provided from different subjects to support their request for extra time. The evidence includes a mixture of annotated coursework and forms with comments which highlight the impact of extra time. 

There are also examples of resources that other schools use when generating evidence for extra time.

Wherever possible, a learner’s difficulty in accessing an assessment should have been identified before they embark on a qualification, though in some cases it may only become apparent during the course of study.

In most cases a diagnosis is not evidence of the difficulty in accessing a particular assessment. 

All learners are unique, and the arrangements should reflect this.

Further support

If you are in any doubt as to a specific arrangement that could be put in place for a learner, either during their course or during assessments, please contact the assessment arrangements team if further help is required.

To give you an idea of specific examples of difficulties and what arrangements could be put in place, have a look at the examples throughout the Assessment Arrangements Explained (391 KB) document.

Self-evaluation

When the visiting verifier comes to your school, they will ask you to explain and provide documented evidence of how you determined the most appropriate assessment arrangement for each learner. This explanation should include how the decision was tailored to the learner's needs across different subjects and levels.

Consider: 

  • How have you captured this information?
  • Did you evaluate the use of an arrangement? Did this result in a change? Do you have evidence to show that the assessment arrangement was effective and removed the disadvantage?
  • If a learner moves on to the next level in your subject, how would you ensure the arrangement was still appropriate and how would you evidence this?
  • Some subjects have similar assessment requirements therefore evidence need not be duplicated however how will you show that each subject specialist evaluated the use of the arrangement in their subject? 
  • How exactly will you work out how much extra time a learner needs?

 

Formally verifying the learner’s need for an assessment arrangement is extremely important for two reasons:

  • You need to be assured that your decision to provide, or not to provide, a particular assessment arrangement can be justified and is in line with both SQA requirements and relevant equality legislation. You should also make a note if the learner chooses not to use the assessment arrangement.
  • SQA needs to be satisfied that schools have in place their own robust internal assessment arrangement verification system which ensures that all relevant information and evidence have been submitted and considered before entering the assessment arrangement request. How you verify your decisions should be included in your policy or documented process. 

Here are some examples of different ways that schools use to record their verification meetings.

 

Intelligence-led sampling

Some schools may wish to consider an intelligence-led sampling approach. This is a quality assurance approach that analyses data to determine which items or processes to sample, rather than relying on a fixed, pre-determined number or random selection. It is a proactive, risk-based strategy that focuses resources where they are most needed to identify and prevent quality issues. 


Intelligence-led sampling follows these key steps:

 

  1. Gathering intelligence: This is the foundation of the system. It involves collecting information from various sources to ensure that you have confidence in your decisions, and that they are equitable. 
  2. Analyse and assess risk: The collected information is analysed to identify patterns, trends and anomalies. This intelligence helps in predicting where and when quality issues are most likely to occur. For example, analysis might reveal:
    1. Certain departments might have inexperienced teachers who are finding it difficult to provide evidence.
    2. A particular type of evidence is not providing you with a clear picture of the need.
    3. A process is not achieving the desired outcome.
  3. Target the sampling: Based on the risk assessment, the sampling plan is adjusted to be more targeted and dynamic.
    1. Increase sampling: more frequent or larger samples are taken from high-risk areas, such as departments with new staff or new processes in place.
    2. Reduced sampling: Sampling frequency can be reduced for areas that consistently demonstrate high quality and stability, freeing up resources.
    3. Specific focus: The sampling can be focused on specific areas such as extra time or individual situations where you feel there is not enough evidence to make a confident judgement.
  4. Continuous improvement: The results from the targeted sampling are fed back into the system, updating the risk assessment. This creates a continuous feedback loop, ensuring the sampling strategy remains effective and adapts to changing circumstances. This makes the quality assurance system more proactive, allowing for timely adjustments and preventing problems before they escalate.

Self-evaluation

When the visiting verifier comes to your school they will ask ‘How have your decisions been internally verified?’  

Consider: 

 

  • Do you hold verification meetings to ensure your decisions are robust?
  • Is it clear in your evidence which learners, subjects and levels your verification meeting is for?
  • Are the meetings held at an appropriate time in the year?
  • Are requests for the provision of assessment arrangements formally authorised by a member of senior management staff?
  • Is this senior member of staff independent from the learning support/equality and inclusion structures in the school?
  • Do you have a procedure for making late requests and how are they verified?
  • Is it clear to your learner which assessments they will receive assessment arrangements for?
  • Do you have a record of any assessment arrangements a learner has refused?

Communication

To ensure everyone understands how assessment arrangements work, many schools provide a leaflet to learners, parents, and carers. This can be used when discussing requests for these arrangements. 
Here are some examples of how schools communicate this information.

 

 

AAR system

An email with log-in details is sent to SQA Co-ordinator in Oct every year.

This AAR system is only for submitting AA requests for external assessments (ie N5-AH QPs). AAs for any other N5-AH components, or other courses, should be processed through your internal AA system and recorded on your internal AA tracking system but not sent to SQA.

AAR system user guide

Step-by-step guide on how to submit requests for N5-AH QPs using the SQA AAR system.

Additional Guidance for use when requesting Adapted QPs and Artwork

Admin & IT adapted coursework

Adapted coursework assessment in Administration and IT: We can provide adapted versions of coursework assessment tasks for N5 Administration and IT, on request. These requests must be submitted to SQA by 20 December. Please do not request these through the AAR system.

Assessment Arrangements Explained

Principles of AA; Types of AA with examples.

Assessment arrangements guide for learners

Braille question papers

Candidate Agreement Form

Template from SQA containing wording that meets GDPR requirements for sharing information.

Digital question papers

EAL spreadsheet

Requests for this arrangement should not be made using the AAR system.

Instead, they must be submitted to SQA on the form which is available on the secure website, along with submission guidance, on the SQA Secure website. Requests for EALs requires a login. Contact your SQAC to discuss access to the SQA Secure portal.

Frequently Asked Questions

ICT security checklist

Self assessment checklist that lists the conditions that centres have to meet for all learners using ICT during external exams.

Information on the appropriate use of Speech Recognition Software in SQA's external examinations.

Mental Health Case Study

Strategies a secondary school took to the increase in pupils experiencing mental health problems in relation to exams.

Non-AA ICT spreadsheet

Requests for arrangements for candidates sitting N5-AH QPs who do not have additional support needs but use ICT should not be made using the AAR system. Instead, they should be submitted to SQA using the form (ICT without spellchecker and Transcription without correction requests 202*) provided on the SQA Secure portal, where guidance on the completion and submission of the form is available.

Non-AA ICT spreadsheet - user guide

https://secure.sqa.org.uk

Guide to completing the Non-AA ICT spreadsheet.

Full Title of the document - USING ICT (WITHOUT SPELLCHECK) AND/OR TRANSCRIPTION (WITHOUT CORRECTION) IN EXTERNAL EXAMS.

Quality assurance of assessment arrangements in internal and external assessments

This document provides guidance on the general approach, and seven specific criteria, that centres should refer to for the quality assurance of their assessment arrangements process.

Subject specific guidance - Core Skills; ESOL; Modern Languages and Gaelic (Learners); Music

Information about AAs that are not allowed for these specific subjects, as they would compromise the integrity of the Skills, Knowledge or Understanding (SKU) being assessed.

SQA Academy course on AA

You will need to set up an account to log in if this is the first time you access the SQA Academy site.

Use of a bilingual dictionary for English as an additional language (EAL) candidates

Requests for arrangements for candidates sitting N5-AH QPs who have English as an additional language should not be made using the AAR system.

Using sign language in exams

Link to SQA policy 'Using sign in exams' and 'Good Practice in assessing deaf candidates' documents.

Visiting Assessment: AA requests

You must contact the Assessment Arrangements team to discuss the arrangements required.

Further information about visiting Assessment can be found in Guide for Co-ordinators on SQA Connect.

Thanks to all schools who contributed to this resource. This toolkit will be continuously updated as schools share their practice with us. If you have any questions or have something you would like to be included in the toolkit, then please contact your Liaison Manager.